LU selected as NVIDIA CUDA Teaching Center

Lamar University computer science students will have access to training in new cutting-edge computer programming techniques thanks to the university being named a NVIDIA CUDA Teaching Center following the submission of a proposal by computer science professor Quoc-Nam Tran.

NVIDIA, the inventor of the graphics processing unit (GPU) in 1999, is the world leader in designing and producing multi-core graphical and high performance computing (HPC) devices.

Computing is evolving from "central processing" on the CPU to "co-processing" on the CPU and GPU. To enable this new computing paradigm, NVIDIA invented the CUDA parallel computing architecture that enables dramatic increases in computing performance by harnessing the power of the GPU, Tran said.

CUDA Teaching Centers have integrated GPU computing techniques into their mainstream computer programming curriculum, and are dedicated to training the next wave of parallel programmers to address today's most challenging computing issues and drive the next wave of scientific discovery.

Lamar University is one of 34 NVIDIA CUDA Teaching Centers within the U.S., joining schools such as North Carolina State University, Purdue University, University of California - Los Angeles, Saint Louis University, University of Pittsburgh and University of Texas at Austin. There are 81 CUDA Teaching Centers worldwide. More than 460 universities worldwide are teaching parallel programming courses based on CUDA architecture.

Apart from the generous equipment donation, Lamar’s distinction as a NVIDIA CUDA Teaching Center provides the university with recognition on NVIDIA’s website, access to teaching materials, and the opportunity to receive discounts on some NVIDIA equipment purchases.